Taking animation by storm
The increasing availability to non-professionals of sophisticated movie-making technology is set to change movie culture, and Moviestorm, a new 3D animated movie-making tool, may have a bigger impact than most. All the necessary tools are accessible online, making the process very simple.  

Cambridge-based Short Fuze Limited was founded in 2003 by Matt Kelland and Dave Lloyd, who were keen computer gamers. They were playing with ‘machinima’ and decided to have a go at making a movie from a game engine, which eventually received critical acclaim. But they found the game was getting in the way, so they explored ways to create movies using a game engine, but without the game. Three years, and a lot of coding later, they are giving us Moviestorm.

Like the Sims
Moviestorm uses a videogame engine to produce 3D animation cheaply and quickly. Users (machinimators) create footage by manipulating characters within a 3D world. The action is captured to a video file and can then be post-processed and edited using standard video techniques.

Like the Sims, you can develop characters and sets from templates, record your own dialogue and choose the characters' appearance and behaviour. You can film and edit scenes from multiple camera viewpoints. Taking advantage of computer game technology and familiarity, it empowers creatively-minded people with no knowledge of standard 3D animation tools to be up and running on their home computer making their own movies.

Creative community
Team member Ann Garner says, ‘there are lots of people who want to be creative, so we have an online community of talent who can collaborate. There are young people out there who have a lot to say, and it’s appealing if you can just see what people are thinking about. Lots of people are making movies on cameraphones, but this is the complete package. You don't have to find your actors and resources, our base pack is free to experiment with. People can post on YouTube and send clips to their friends.’

Garner sees its appeal to women who are looking for narrative engagement and in education for developing literacy. Moviestorm is evolving and new graphics and templates are being added. To get involved, just visit the website, download the software and tell them what you think. Make sure you're sitting comfortably, it may be habit-forming.